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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26007019">Razz Berries &amp; Rice Cakes</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lexsssu/pseuds/Lexsssu'>Lexsssu</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword &amp; Shield | Pokemon Sword &amp; Shield Versions</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Bayan Region, Cliche, Cultural Differences, Cultural References, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Mush, Height Differences, Hijinks &amp; Shenanigans, Meet-Cute, Original Pokemon, Original Pokemon Region, Original Pokemon Team, Reader-Insert, Romance, Self-Indulgent, Size Difference, Sporadic Updates, Tooth-Rotting Fluff</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 04:22:19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,344</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26007019</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lexsssu/pseuds/Lexsssu</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>From the sunny shores, lush forests, and steep mountains of the Bayan region, opportunity throws you far away from your home and into the Galar region.</p><p>Armed with your trusty pokemon by your side, you try to make the most of living away from your family and being independent after spending your whole life with them. The pay is good and the perks are almost too good to be true once you're recruited by Galar's Pokemon League to work for them.</p><p>Work is easy enough and you're content with focusing on your career and raising your pokemon in the meantime. </p><p>Of course life is never that easy.</p><p>Enter Raihan, Tamer of Dragons &amp; Leader of Galar's strongest gym.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kibana | Raihan/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>63</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Ngl this fic was brought about by my thirst for more Raihan fics, specifically ones that just focused on the cliche romance-y fluff without any drama</p><p>Plus my intense need to finally use this awesome fan region based on my own country especially with how cute their fakemon are &lt;3</p><p>Check out and follow @bayanregion on IG &amp; Twitter if you wanna learn more about the Bayan region (*≧∀≦*)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“So this is Galar, huh? Whatchu think, guys? It’s not even snowing in this part of the region, but it already feels a lot colder than Bayan” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Your three pokemon cried out in affirmation from their respective spots, Datu the <a href="https://twitter.com/BayanRegion/status/1157211848745205760/photo/1">Aguilit</a> on your shoulder, Pepe the <a href="https://twitter.com/BayanRegion/status/1158249299760730112/photo/1">Calfin</a> in your arms, and Toni the <a href="https://twitter.com/BayanRegion/status/1156984169152438272/photo/1">Bintukit</a> walking on his own beside you.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The four of you had only just landed in the Galar region for your new job here. It took almost a full day of air travel by plane just to get here due to simply how far Galar and <a href="https://twitter.com/bayanregion">Bayan</a> were from each other. Heck, even your family was hesitant at first, but in the end they accepted your wishes and gave their blessings.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There were many tears, well-wishes, and promises to call frequently before you finally started this newest chapter in your life. After 22 years of living with your family in Bayan, it was time for you to step forward and carve your own path by yourself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And so you found yourself in a place that contrasted with your home region. Not just from their language &amp; climate, but also the overall culture was in stark contrast to everything you’ve grown up with. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Think we got what it takes to make this place our new home?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <b>
    <em>Aguililiiit!/Calcal!/Bintuuu!</em>
  </b>
  <span>”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now that’s the spirit!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Regardless of your own fears and anxiety over what the future holds for you, you can always count on your pokemon to have your back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The next few hours were a blur to you. From going through customs at the airport, waiting for your luggage, and then taking the train at Wyndon Station towards Hammerlocke. Sad to say that the jetlag really got to you, spending your time at the train sleeping instead of marvelling at the sights that Galar had to offer. While Pepe and Datu at least did some sight-seeing for you, Toni, ever the protective one, watched over your prone form vigilantly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The Grass-type never allowed his own eyes to stray from you, glaring at anyone who let their eyes stay on you for too long.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Before you knew it, you were standing in front of your very own apartment for the next 3-5 years. Even longer if your new employers decided they liked you enough to keep you. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Whether you’re only gonna be here for 3 years or not, you were at least going to make the most of your stay.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Watch out Galar ‘cuz us Bayani’s are gonna blow you away!”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Elsewhere in the city of Hammerlocke, a certain gym leader and Tamer of Dragons mindlessly scrolled through his social media on his Rotom Phone. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>For once his thoughts weren’t occupied by training or adding to his impressive gallery of photos. Rather, they were on a rather interesting sight he’d seen earlier on his way back to the city from Wyndon.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A girl, well a young woman actually, sleeping across from him inside the train. Her features were already quite exotic in themselves, marking her already as someone not native to this region. Even her pokemon were wholly unfamiliar to him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>While Raihan wasn’t a professor or researcher of any kind, he at least felt a sense of familiarity from most pokemon whether or not he accurately remembered their names and regions of origin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Seeing as they got off at Hammerlocke station as well, he figured that he’d probably run across them again soon enough. Not to mention that he was pretty sure he saw them heading straight for the same apartment complex he lived in, the one where those employed by the league are housed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’d get to ask his questions soon enough.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Although it was also a bonus that she was really cute too.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A tiny little thing, she barely even reached his chest for Arceus’ sake! </span>
</p><p>
  <span>But that only added to the cuteness factor, especially with her full &amp; plump cheeks that just begged you to pinch and squish them, a small and round face that he was pretty sure he’d be able to cradle easily even with just a single hand, and those slightly narrowed yet expressive dark eyes that shone with unbridled mirth and kindness.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A fanged grin made its way to his handsome face, further proof of his wild, untamed, and feral beauty that had broken countless hearts even before he became Galar’s most prized gym leader. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Things were about to get interesting around these parts.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was sure of it.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“When I decided that I wanted to work in another region like this one I didn’t think it would be this different from Bayan” You mused, giddily perusing the vast selection of native Galarian grocery items in front of you.</p><p>With Aguilit perched on the handles of the pushcart, Calfin on the child’s seat, and Bintukit walking by your side, your trip to the supermarket to stock your new fridge up was so far an interesting one.</p><p>“I’m not sure if Galarian’s are geniuses or just plain ‘ol weird. I mean look at this, cheddar and chutney potato chips? <em>Ay</em> <em>puta</em>, even their cheese has strength levels? Am I gonna choke and suffocate from eating a piece of cheese that’s a bit too strong or what? <em>Dios mio</em>, just let me buy some <em>queso de bola</em> or some <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eden_(cheese)"><b>Emboar Cheese</b></a> and be done with it” </p><p>Luckily enough for you, it was late and there didn’t seem to be any other customers at the moment. That left you free to voice your observations with your three pokemon in peace and without any fear of being overheard <strike> and persecuted over how you slandered Galarian cuisine. </strike></p><p>You had to admit though, for all the weirdness Galarians have when it came to their food items, there were a lot of interesting things as well. Like their aisle of ready-to-cook meals that only had to be heated up before they were good to go. You spent a while just checking out the individual packages of meals and assessing them seeing as much of the meals were dishes that you thought you’d only ever be able to eat at a restaurant and not just cheap takeout.</p><p>Having tired of how long you were taking, your 3 Pokemon opted to wander around the relatively large store together. Toni made sure to watch over his siblings so they can all get back to you in one piece <strike> and not have you all deported for doing something incredibly stupid after their little adventure. </strike></p><p>This left you by your lonesome, not really minding the solitude for once and just enjoying the <a href="https://youtu.be/D__6hwqjZAs">soft music that echoed across the near empty store</a> as you went about your business. Your new employers gave you a week to get settled in so you still had several days at your disposal to explore and get used to your new environment.</p><p>The day had been spent fixing up your new place, unpacking your things, and etc. That left you the night to stock up on food items since you refused to blow a huge chunk of your finances from buying takeout or any of those ready-made meals the whole time you were staying here.</p><p>You were Bayani so of course you’d cook your own meals! Your <em> lola </em> and mama would have your ass if you were to completely subsist on takeout. You wouldn’t put it past them to take the next plane ride all the way to Galar just to talk your ear off about forgetting your heritage just because you decided to stay in another region.</p><p>That’s why you found yourself stuck at one of the many aisles, trying in vain to grab your treasure a.k.a. The bottle of soy sauce that just had to be placed on the highest shelf. You wouldn’t be caught dead trying the other brands on the lower shelves, because the only soy sauce that was worthy of going into any of your meals was a good ‘ol bottle of <a href="https://kikkomanusa.com/homecooks/products/products_hc_details.php?pf=00070#:~:text=All%2Dpurpose%20Kikkoman%20Soy%20Sauce,and%20distinctive%20reddish%2Dbrown%20color."><b> <em>Pokkimon Soy Sauce</em> </b></a>.</p><p>Now if only you were taller then perhaps you wouldn’t look like an overexcited Aipom trying to reach for some Nanab berries growing from the highest branch of the tree. Try as you might, your treasure remained far away from your grasp, seemingly taunting you from its perch and reminding you yet again that you were VERY far from home.</p><p>“Are Galarians supposed to be giants or something? Even a small step ladder would have been a big help right now…”</p><p>“We’re not giants, shortcake. You’re just...fun-sized is all”</p><p>“<em> Putangina— </em>”</p><p>Your soul almost jumped right out of your body at the sudden voice from behind you. Taking a few deep breaths while clutching the front of your sweatshirt where your heart was located, you finally spared a glance at the person <strike><em> gago </em></strike> who decided to spook the hell out of you.</p><p>Right behind you, almost trapping your petite figure against the shelves stood a tall, dark, and handsome young man seemingly around your age. Cyan eyes stared down at you with intrigued amusement, his supple lips pulled into a grin that showed off one glinting fang. He was all sharp angles and hard planes from his face, down to the way his lean yet taut muscles strained against the fabric of his clothes.</p><p>“<em> Jusko lord… </em> ” You whisper underneath your breath, eyes having widened comically as you tried to make sense of this situation. Never in your twenty plus years of life did you ever imagine you’d find yourself in a scene straight from your mama’s <em> telenovela’s </em>.</p><p>The Deerling in headlights look you had on must have amused him, for his roguish grin grew all the more wider, “Meowth got your tongue?”</p><p>“<em> Oh no...<a href="https://www.tagaloglang.com/ampogi/">AMPOGI NYA </a></em>”</p><p>At this point you were ready to start praying to Arceus in hopes that the Creator will take your soul peacefully despite the rather embarrassing end of being flustered to death by just one tall, dark, and handsome Galarian man and his damned fanged smirk of all things.</p><p>“E-Excuse me <em> po </em>???” </p><p>“You’ve been trying to get that bottle for a while now and as cute as it was to see you jumping like a little Grookey, I thought you might’ve been getting tired already and needed a little help” The stranger grabbed the bottle of Pokkiman Soy Sauce with ease, allowing you to glimpse just how long and toned his arm was.</p><p>“Here. You’re lucky I decided to grab some stuff at the store this late” He hands the bottle of dark liquid to you, the outstretched hand encompassing the entire bottle should he decide to clutch it.</p><p>Frozen in your spot, you could only stare at the man and your prize with eyes the size of dinner plates. Your brain was desperately trying to reboot itself, because you were unused to encountering handsome gentlemen that deemed you worthy of their time and attention even if it was to only do a good deed.</p><p>“It’s not everyday I get to help a damsel in distress you know? So I’d be lying if I said that I’m not extra happy to lend a hand”</p><p>You could feel the heat creeping up your cheeks and reaching all the way to your ears, mouth opening and closing yet no sound could escape. None of those love stories or comics could have ever prepared you for this sort of situation. </p><p>Did you look okay? Were you acting too weird right now? Was he getting tired of your silence?</p><p>You really didn’t know what to do…</p><p>Despite your fears, the man’s grin deepened into what could only be a dastardly smirk that threatened to make you self-combust with how flustered you were getting at this point.</p><p>“Blush and act any cuter than that and I might just kidnap you for myself—”</p><p>“<b>BINTUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!</b>”</p><p>Like an unlikely hero, your precious Bintukit came from out of nowhere and lunged at the man with all its might. </p><p>Luckily enough however, your new acquaintance had quick reflexes and caught the little grass type and held it up by the nape of his neck. Toni growled and hissed at his captor.</p><p>“A bit feisty for such a little thing, aren’t ya?” Rather than annoyed, he seemed to be highly amused by the antics of your darling Pokemon. “You’re lucky your trainer is such a cutie or else the great Raihan wouldn’t take your clear challenge lying down”</p><p>So his name was Raihan then?</p><p>
  <strike>At least now you had a name for the face that would probably haunt your dreams for the next few weeks or so. </strike>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Decided to pick up this fic again and finally try to hopefully see it through the end (*´▽`*)</p><p>I plan this to be a cheesy, funny, short, but sweet read so well...I hope you guys stick with me 'til the end ٩(｡•́‿•̀｡)۶</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“So this is your first time in Galar then?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Y-Yeah. This is the first time I’ve ever been so far from home before so it’s gonna take some time getting used to…” You trailed off, clutching Calfin to your chest with one arm and your eco-bag of groceries in your free hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Aguilit flitted about in the air near you, whereas Bintukit carried the other purchased goods. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Must be a bit jarring then since everything’s so different here. Your reaction at the grocery store proves as much” Mused the gym leader as he walked through the dark streets of Hammerlocke with you, his own house conveniently located a mere block away from your apartment complex.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>You resisted the urge to smack yourself, utterly mortified when he reminded you of your small tirade just earlier. Thankfully you were carrying groceries or else you’d have probably yeeted yourself off the nearest cliff by now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...It’s not my fault you Galarians have such weird tastes”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A baritone chuckle escaped him, cyan orbs glittering beneath the light as he stared at you from the corners of his eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I suppose we are a bunch of eccentric blokes.” Raihan stops in his tracks as you both arrive outside your apartment. “Though I guess that means I’ll have to rely on you to broaden my horizons.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Standing right in front of him beneath the light of the streetlamps, you marveled at his imposing figure contrasted greatly by his easygoing and playful temperament.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That is, if the lady permits uncultured swine like myself to partake of her culinary masterpieces one day”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It takes you a second to digest his words, swallowing inaudibly as he renders you speechless for the umpteenth time in the span of an hour. As you scramble for answers amidst your embarrassment, Raihan is as sneaky as a Thievul when he takes advantage of your apparent distraction and grabs the jasmine flower hair clip you wore.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>You are snapped out of your stupor when you feel the strands of hair being pulled, levelling a startled gaze at the grinning young man who held the accessory between two long fingers. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll be taking this as a token from a fair lady, seeing as I’ve been such a chivalrous knight by helping you at the grocery store and even walked you home” He clasps the accessory into his own hair, all the while grinning cheekily like the Persian that caught the Pidgey.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of it until the day I finally get to taste your homemade Bayani food. I’ll give it back after that, the Great Raihan promises”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Before you could voice your thoughts at his arrangement, the tall man is already walking away and thanks to his long, muscular legs he’s already too far for you to catch up, much less hear your squawk of indignation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>You could only stare in complete and utter bewilderment until you could no longer see his silhouette in the distance. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...What just happened?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Did Raihan, Galar’s strongest gym leader, just take your favorite hair clip...in exchange for a meal?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Had you been on your own then you’d probably stay rooted where you stood, but you luckily had loyal and caring Pokemon that worried about your wellbeing. While Bintukit &amp; Aguilit carried your groceries, Calfin had already slipped out of your arms and pushed at your legs from behind. Gently nudging and urging you to start moving lest you all get sick from the chilly Galarian night considering that none of you were used to such cold climates.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For the rest of the night you go about your chores almost mechanically, unable to come into terms with everything that happened in such a short amount of time. Even as you watch your favorite shows on your laptop surrounded by your Pokemon, your mind is still occupied by that self-assured, charming rake of a gym leader from earlier. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>His lazy smiles and the confident way he held himself without coming off as too arrogant or overbearing plagued your mind dead into the night until you fell asleep from sheer exhaustion.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>You dream of cyan orbs and fanged grins that night.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Though he promised to sort of meet up with you again if only to taste authentic Bayani food, you suddenly realize the day after that you didn’t have Raihan’s contact number if his words last night really had any merit. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It will be a cold day in Bayan and Alola before you’d even go to his gym of all places to ask for it—</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Not that you planned on asking for his number of course!</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Tanga</span>
  </em>
  <span>, don’t get ahead of yourself. Raihan’s probably just REALLY interested in our local food.” You mutter to yourself as you walk along the streets of Hammerlocke, trying to familiarize yourself with the enormous walled city seeing as it’ll be your home for the next several years.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I mean, Bayani food isn’t famous like Kalosian or Kantonian cuisine and only started getting a bit of attention lately so of course he’s probably just really curious. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Diba</span>
  </em>
  <span>, guys?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Agui/Cal/Bintuu!</span>
  </em>
  <span>” Came the collective acknowledgement of your beloved Pokemon.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>While Calfin and Aguilit were neutral towards the dragon trainer, Bintukit was the only one who thought of him with suspicion and weariness. He didn’t like the way the man got too close to you, acting so familiarly as if you didn’t just meet by chance for the first time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Thankfully though, since you didn’t have Raihan’s number then that meant any future interactions with the man would be avoided. Which is for the best since the last thing that Toni wanted was for him to corrupt you.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As the strongest of your Pokemon, it’s his duty to protect you after all, even from potential mates that certainly didn’t deserve you. Toni is comforted with the knowledge that your stay in Galar will be peaceful, because what were the chances of you and Raihan meeting again?</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>The trouble with moving to a whole new city is that you’re unfamiliar with the area.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Moving a whole new region on the other hand meant that you were utterly at the mercy of your surroundings.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Perhaps that’s how you found yourself at the seedy part of Hammerlocke after taking a wrong turn and walking through several alleyways thinking that it’d lead you back to the main district.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bintukit is barely standing, covered in bruises while your two other Pokemon rested within their Pokeballs after being viciously outclassed by your opponent’s Galvantula. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Of course you’re unlucky enough to encounter a random hoodlum in these parts, coercing you into a Pokemon battle before most likely stealing all the money you had on hand after wiping the floor with you.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Well, so much for settling into Galar easily.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Looks like it’s your unlucky day, girlie. How's about you surrender now and hand over a nugget before we call it quits eh?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The greasy leer sent your way felt much worse than knowing that you’d have to cough up every cent you currently had on you—</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Whenever there’s a fair maiden in distress, you can be sure that a valiant knight will be there to save the day” Footsteps echoed through the narrow alleyway as a tall figure appeared, confidence practically pouring with each step. “Unfortunately for you, I’m not feeling up to being a chivalrous knight today so excuse me if I...rough you up a bit too much”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Your eyes catch the glint of one gleaming fang and blazing cyan orbs.</span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Check out my other social media accounts to see more content~</p><div class="center">
  <p>    <a href="https://lexsssu.carrd.co/">Lexsssu's Links</a><br/></p>
</div></blockquote></div></div>
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